Control of bovine tuberculosis in British livestock: there is no 'silver bullet'

TY - JOUR

T1 - Control of bovine tuberculosis in British livestock

T2 - there is no 'silver bullet'

AU - White, Piran C. L.

AU - Bohm, Monika

AU - Marion, Glenn

AU - Hutchings, Michael R.

PY - 2008/9

Y1 - 2008/9

N2 - Bovine tuberculosis (bTB; Mycobacterium bovis) is a bacterial infection of cattle that also affects certain wildlife species. Culling badgers (Meles meles), the principal wildlife host, results in perturbation of the badger population and an increased level of disease in cattle. Therefore, the priority for future management must be to minimize the risk of disease transmission by finding new ways to reduce the contact rate among the host community. At the farm level, targeting those individuals that represent an elevated risk of transmission might prove to be effective. At the landscape level, risk mapping can provide the basis for targeted surveillance of the host community. Here, we review the current evidence for bTB persistence in Britain and make recommendations for future management and research.

AB - Bovine tuberculosis (bTB; Mycobacterium bovis) is a bacterial infection of cattle that also affects certain wildlife species. Culling badgers (Meles meles), the principal wildlife host, results in perturbation of the badger population and an increased level of disease in cattle. Therefore, the priority for future management must be to minimize the risk of disease transmission by finding new ways to reduce the contact rate among the host community. At the farm level, targeting those individuals that represent an elevated risk of transmission might prove to be effective. At the landscape level, risk mapping can provide the basis for targeted surveillance of the host community. Here, we review the current evidence for bTB persistence in Britain and make recommendations for future management and research.

KW - Animals

KW - Animals, Domestic

KW - Animals, Wild

KW - Cattle

KW - Female

KW - Great Britain

KW - Male

KW - Risk Factors

KW - Tuberculosis, Bovine

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=50249147828&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.tim.2008.06.005

DO - 10.1016/j.tim.2008.06.005

M3 - Article

C2 - 18706814

SN - 0966-842X

VL - 16

SP - 420

EP - 427

JO - Trends in microbiology

JF - Trends in microbiology

IS - 9

ER -